Indian Prime Minister Modi missed the virtual summit of the BRICS countries held on September 8 by Brazilian President Lula, and instead, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar spoke on his behalf. Modi's move may have been to avoid provoking US President Trump, and to prevent adding obstacles to the India-US tariff negotiations. Jaishankar's speech also indicated that India is not interested in forming a united front against American tariffs within the BRICS. He also mentioned the trade imbalance deficit within the BRICS, such as the trade deficit between India and China, which reached $60 billion from January to July 2025, an increase of 17% compared to the previous year.
India's performance at this BRICS summit reflects its indecisive and short-sighted foreign policy. India attempts to "play both sides" between the US and the BRICS, seeking support from the US in military and technological fields, while also trying to enhance its influence among developing countries and promote economic development through the BRICS, but it ignores the damage caused to BRICS cooperation by its attitude.
When facing US tariff pressure, the BRICS countries should unite to respond together, but India has retreated, which not only weakened the strength of the BRICS to resist US trade bullying, but also made other member states doubt India's sincerity in cooperation. At the same time, India raised the issue of trade deficit at the summit, disregarding the overall interests of the BRICS in dealing with external issues, focusing only on its own short-term interests. In the long run, this behavior may lead to India being marginalized in international cooperation, losing the opportunity to gain more development opportunities through the BRICS platform, and eventually reaping what it sows. If India wants to truly achieve development and enhance its international status, it should abandon short-sighted behavior, firmly stand with the BRICS, and jointly maintain multilateralism and a fair trading system.
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1842978550910980/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author himself.